Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Building a sharing economy and collaborative consumption

The People Who Share is an exciting
movement that is making sharing mainstream. We're on a mission to build
a Sharing Economy and we love to help you discover that sharing is...
fun, affordable, easy, accessible, mobile and of course social. We bring
it all together on-line, on land and on-the-go.

We're building a Sharing Economy one click at a time, you can start sharing at compare and share.com
the world’s first one-stop comparison marketplace of the Sharing
Economy where at the moment you can find car and ride sharing all in one
place.

We want to encourage conversations between people who share to find a
way to enjoy more and live better. See something you like? Got something
to share? Let us know, share with us!

Want to know more about the Sharing Economy? You can find it all here on our TV channel -- Sharing Economy TV. You can listen to our podcasts or read our blog

Our Purpose

We're committed to reshaping the world through sharing, harnessing the
power of reciprocity to create happier, healthier and more sustainable
lifestyles. We're here to enable sharing, to make it easy for people who
need, to connect with people who have, and build a global community of
sharers. Our passion is unlocking the sharing potential that exists in
each of us. What will you share?

Our vision of the future is a thriving Sharing Economy where the need
to own is transformed. Everyone is a supplier of goods, services and
experiences. Where people share skills, time, resources, knowledge,
responsibility, opportunities, ideas, goods, services and stuff.

It's a world in which our collective capability meets our collective
needs and we collaborate to enhance each other's lives, protect our
planet and create wealth from which everybody benefits.

It all started on a rainy day in Brighton, UK, back in May 2012. I
heard that the social enterprise A Good Company was running an
initiative called A Good Week, a
seven day showcase of good people doing good things to make the world a
better place. Inspired by their efforts, I decided it would be fun to
run a day focusing on sharing—and National Sharing Day was born.

With just six weeks to go before the event, I spoke to a senior
colleague in the civil society sector in the UK, and his response was
clear: “Six weeks to plan a national campaign with no money and no
support is bonkers, Benita, it’s impossible.”

I’ve never been one to take the word “no” for an answer and the word
“impossible” just isn’t in my vocabulary. What’s the worst that could
happen? That only a few people show up on National Sharing Day to share in their communities? That didn’t seem so bonkers to me.

Compton Ave Big lunch, Brighton UK. Photo from The People Who Share.

Within six week’s time, a small group of volunteers and I had engaged
45 partner organizations, and on June 20th, 2012 there were event
across the country from clothing swaps in Newcastle to freecycling in
Liverpool and a giant skillshare in London. More than a just a few
people showed up—and they shared!

By noon the #nationalsharingday hashtag
was trending globally on Twitter, and people from Ukraine to Korea were
asking for a National Sharing Day in their countries.

By midnight, we’d decided to run the first Global Sharing Day (#globalsharingday),
which happened on November 14, 2012. It helped kick start the world’s
largest people-driven campaign raising awareness about the emerging
sharing economy.

Using feedback we received from the 165 original Global Sharing Day
partners, we decided to schedule all future Global Sharing Days on the
first Sunday in June of each year, involve big partners such as the UK’s
Big Lunch, and engage a network of over 70 million people in 192 countries.

But behind the big numbers and the success lies another story: The
truth is that we haven’t had it easy as a volunteer-run organization
with no funders. It requires a lot of hard work with little thanks. We
don’t spend time filling in endless grant forms; instead we take action
and find ways to get things done without cash. It means that a small
group of dedicated volunteers spend countless days and nights working to
make Global Sharing Day happen. I spent three years without a salary
and my hunch is that people think we have a pot of cash supporting us
because we’ve achieved so much in such a short period of time and we’re
popular with the media.
On one hand I wish that were true, but on the other I’m glad that
through everything we’ve accomplished we’ve lived the values of the
sharing economy we seek to make mainstream.

People have shared their time, talents, spaces, equipment, music, poetry, and food to make Global Sharing Day what it is.

Organizations like Konnektid.com and Peerby.com in
the Netherlands, worked together to inspire 250 people to come together
in Amsterdam on June 2nd 2013. They shared picnic blankets and food
from Italian salads to lovely homemade carrot cakes and quiches.

“All the blankets were knitted together to make one big picnic
blanket. People enjoyed yoga classes, storytelling workshops, and some
even learned to play the guitar. The event demonstrated how sharing can
make our lives more fun, social, and easy,” says organiser Michael
Visser from Konnektid.

Global Sharing Day 2013, Amsterdam, Konnektid.Skilio ran an online skills
sharing event featuring members from seven different countries and
reaching people in 15 different countries.

“Global Sharing Day also succeeded in being a focal point for sharing
economy startups to rally together, get in touch with one another, and
develop a group identity. Bravo! We really look forward the next
opportunity to support the great work that The People Who Share are
doing,” says Skilio.

Even though we received global media coverage from outlets such as BBC Worldwide TV News
and CBC Radio, we weren’t content. So last year we launched Sharing TV,
the world’s first crowdsourced TV channel to highlight the sharing
economy—again with zero budget. Organizations from ten different
countries streamed live from their events on the big day itself.

Global Sharing Day has been a huge success because people all around
the world make it a success. What partners have said about the day makes
all the sleepless and penniless days and nights worthwhile:

“Sharing enables us to experience and access much more. It can help
save money, space and resources, but best of all, it's a great way to
get to know your neighbours and help them out. Global Sharing Day was a
fantastic opportunity to shine a spotlight on sharing and encourage more
people to discover the benefits and get involved,” says Streetlife.com.

“Global Sharing Day is a great platform for showcasing the values and
benefits of sharing. It provides an easier way to measure outcomes on a
major scale. Strength in numbers always works, especially in our world,
which is dominated by large numerical figures in forms of currency…lets
equal the balance by human solidarity in the form of positive actions!”
says Exploring Senses CIC.

Global Sharing Day picnic, Netherlands, Peerby.

My favorite Global Sharing Day story, however, comes from Liftshare.
On Global Sharing Day 2012, a woman contacted Liftshare to thank them
for really helping her disabled son. Their 19-year-old had to travel to
an outreach college and a “lovely lady” shared an 80-mile round-trip
ride with him. That’s what I call the power of sharing.

Global Sharing Day will take place on Sunday, June 1st
this year as the grand finale to #SharingSpring. It’s an opportunity to
celebrate this vibrant new economy and for you and your community to
join a global movement that now reaches over 70 million in 192
countries!

For the sharing economy to go from niche to mainstream, it’ll
take a shared effort (no surprise there). Global Sharing Day is a chance
to come together to achieve something incredible.
Come, join the movement, and promote the sharing economy wherever you are in the world!